Stocks open mixed on Wall Street; Apple plunges

A sharp drop in Apple's stock is sending the Nasdaq composite lower in early trading on Wall Street after the electronics giant predicted slower sales. Other market indicators were mixed.

Apple plunged 11 percent to $455 shortly after the opening bell Thursday. The company late Wednesday predicted that its sales would grow just 7 percent in the current quarter, a let-down for a company that has regularly posted growth rates of more than 50 percent.

The Nasdaq fell 20 points to 3,133. Apple is the biggest component of the technology-heavy index.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 32 points to 13,809 and the Standard & Poor's 500 was flat at 1,495.

Netflix jumped 40 percent to $144 after surprising the market with strong subscriber growth and a profit.